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Vacuum Packaging and Food Safety
The vacuum packagin g process extends the life of
foo ds by rem ov in g mos t of the ai r fro m the sea led
container , thereby reducing oxidation, whic h affects
nut rit ion al v alu e, fl avor a nd o ver all q ual ity . Rem ov ing
air can also inhi bit gro wt h of mi cr oor ga ni sms , whi c h
can cause problems under certain conditions:
Mold – Easily identified by its fuzzy characteri stic.
Mol d c ann ot gro w in a low ox yg en envi ro nme nt,
the ref or e v acu um p ac kagi ng c an slow the gr ow th
of mold.
Y east – Results in fermentation, which can be
ide nti fie d by smel l and ta ste. Y eas t ne eds wa ter ,
sugar and a moderate temperat ure to grow. It causes
als o surv iv e wi th or w ith out air . Slo wi ng th e gro wt h
of yeast requires refrigeration, while freezing stop s
it completely .
Bact eria – Res ul ts in an un pl ea sant odor ,
di sc ol or ati on an d/o r soft or sl imy tex tu re . Und er
the right conditions, anaerobic bacteria such as
Clos tridium botulinum (the organism that causes
Botulism) can grow without air and sometimes
cannot be detected by smell or tas te. Although it
is extremely rare, it can be very dangerous.
T o pre serve food s saf ely , it is cri tic al th at you
maintain low temperatures. Y ou can significantly
reduce the growth of microorganisms at
temperatur es of 40°F (4°C) or below. Freezing at 0°F
(-1 7°C) do es not kil l micr oor ga ni sms , bu t st op s them
fro m gro wing . For lon g-t er m sto ra ge , alw ays free ze
perishab le foods that have been vacuum packag ed,
and keep refrigerated after thawing.
It is im port an t to note tha t v ac uum pac kagi ng is NO T
a sub stit ute for c an nin g and it c ann ot reve rs e the
det e rio ra tio n of food s. It c an on ly slo w dow n the
c ha ng es in qua lit y . It is diffi cu lt to pr edi ct how lo ng
foo ds wi ll ret ai n thei r to p-q ual ity fla vo r , app ea ra nc e
or te xt ur e bec ause it depe nd s on ag e and con dit ion
of the food on the day it was vacuumed pack aged.
IMP OR T ANT: V acu um pa c kagin g is NO T a subs tit ute
for refrigeration or freezing. Any perishable foods
that require refrigeration must still be refrigerat ed
or frozen after vacuum pack aging.
Food Preparation and Reheating Tips
Thawin g and Reheating V acuum Packaged Foods
Alw ays tha w foo ds in eit her refr ig er ato r or
microwav e — do not thaw perishable foods
at room temperatur e.
T o reheat foods in a microwave in a FoodSaver
®
Bag, always cut corner of the bag before placing it
on a microwave-s afe dish. However, to avoid hot
spots, do not reheat bone-in meat or greasy foods
in microwave within a FoodSaver
®
Bag. Y ou c an also
reheat foods in FoodSaver
®
Bag s b y pl acin g them in
water at a low simmer below 170°F ( 75°C).
Prepar ation Guidelines for Meat and Fish:
Fo r bes t r es ult s, pr e-f re ez e me at and fi sh f or 1- 2
hours before vacuum packagin g in a FoodSaver
®
Ba g. T hi s he lp s ret ain the jui c e and sha pe, and
guarantees a better seal.
If it’s not pos si bl e to pre- fre ez e, plac e a fold ed
paper towel between meat or fish and top of bag,
but below seal area. Leave paper towel in bag to
ab sor b ex c es s mois tu re and jui c es during va cu um
pac kaging proces s.
Note: Beef may appear darker after vacuum
pac kag in g due to the remo val of ox yg en.
This is not an indication of spoilag e.
Prepar ation Guidelines for Hard Cheeses:
T o ke ep c heese fres h, v acuum pac kag e it after eac h
use. Make your FoodSaver
®
Bag e xtr a lon g, allo wi ng
one inc h of bag m at eri al for e ac h time y ou pl an to
ope n and r ese al in ad dit ion to the 3-inc h room yo u
normally leave between contents and seal. Simply
cut sea le d edg e and rem ov e c hee se. Whe n yo u’r e
re ad y to rep ac kag e the ch ees e, ju st dro p it in bag
and reseal.
IMP OR T ANT: Due t o the ri sk of an aer obic bac t eri a,
soft cheeses should never be vacuum pack aged.
Prepar ation Guidelines for V egetabl es:
V egetables need to be blanc hed before vacuum
pac k ag ing. Thi s proc ess sto p s the enz yme actio n
that could lead to loss of flavor , color and texture.
T o bl anc h veg etab le s, pl ace them in boil in g wat er
or in the microwave until they are cooked, but still
cri sp. Bl an c hin g tim es ran g e fro m 1 to 2 min ut es for
le afy gr een s and pe as ; 3 to 4 min ut es for sna p pea s,
sli c ed z ucc hini or broc col i; 5 min ut es for car rot s; an d
7 to 11 minutes for corn on the cob. After blanchin g,
immerse veget ables in cold water to stop the
cookin g process. Finally , dr y veget ables on a towel
before vacuum pac kaging.
Note: All veg etable s (including broccoli, brussels
spr outs, c abb ag e, cau lif lo wer , kal e, t urn ip s)
natur ally emit gases during storage. Therefore, after
blanc hing, they must be stored in freezer only.
Guidelines
for Vacuum Packaging
Whe n fre ez ing ve ge ta bl es , it is best to pr e-f re ez e
them for 1-2 hours or until solidly frozen. T o freeze
ve ge ta bl es in ind iv idu al servi ng s, fir st pl ac e on
a baki ng sh eet and s pre ad them ou t so they are
not touc hin g. T hi s pr ev ent s th em fr om fr eez ing
tog ether in a blo c k. On c e they are fro ze n, r emo ve
from baking sheet and vacuum pack age veget ables
in a FoodSaver
®
Bag. After they have been vacuum
pac kag ed, ret urn them to the free ze r .
IMP OR T ANT: Due t o the ri sk of an aer obic bac t eri a,
fr es h mus hr ooms, on ion s, & garl ic shou ld neve r
be vacuum packaged.
Prepar ation Guidelines for Leafy V egetable s:
For best results, use a canister to store leafy
veget ables. First wash the vegetable s, and then dry
wi th a to we l or s al ad spin ner . After they are dried ,
put them in a canister and vacuum packag e. Store
in refrigerator.
Prepar ation Guidelines for Fruits:
When freezing sof t fruits or berries, it is best to pre-
freeze them for 1-2 hours or until solidly frozen. T o
freeze fruit in individual ser vings, first plac e on a
baking sheet and spread them out so they are not
tou c hi ng. Th is pre ven ts them from free zi ng tog eth er
in a bl oc k. Onc e the y ar e fr oz en , rem ov e fr om ba ki ng
sheet and vacuum pac kage fruit in a FoodSaver
®
Ba g. Aft er th ey hav e bee n v acu um pa c kag ed, ret urn
them to the freezer .
Y ou c an v acuum pac kag e porti on s fo r ba ki ng, or in
yo ur f av ori te co mbi na tio ns for ea sy fru it sal ad all year
rou nd. If st oring in the re fri ge ra to r , we re c omm end
using a FoodSaver
®
Canister .
Prepar ation Guidelines for Baked Goods:
T o va cuu m pac ka ge soft or airy bak ed good s, we
rec ommend using a FoodSaver
®
Canister so they
will hold their shape. If using a bag, pre-freeze for
1-2 hours or until solidly frozen. T o save time, make
cookie dough, pie shells, whole pies, or mix dry
ing re die nts in ad va nc e and va cu um pa c k ag e for
later use.
Prepar ation Guidelines for C offee and Powdery
Foods:
T o prev en t fo od pa rtic le s fr om be ing dra wn into
vacuum pump, place a coffee filter or paper towel at
top of ba g or c ani ster be for e vacu um pac kag ing . Y ou
ca n als o pl ac e the foo d in its orig in al bag ins ide a
FoodSaver
®
Bag, or use a FoodSaver
®
Univ ers al Lid
with the original container to vacuum packag e.
Prepar ation Guidelines for Liquids:
Be for e y ou v acuum pac kag e liq uid s suc h as soup
st oc k, pre- fre ez e in a c as serol e di sh, loaf pan or ic e
cub e tr ay unt il sol id. Rem ov e fro z en li qui d fr om pa n
and vacuum packag e in a FoodSaver
®
Bag. Y ou c an
st ac k th ese “fro zen bri c ks” in y our fre ez er . When
you’re ready to use, just cut corner of bag and place
in a di sh in micr ow ave or dr op int o wa te r at a lo w
simmer , below 17 0°F ( 75°C).
T o va cuu m pac ka ge non-c arbon ated bot tl ed li qui ds ,
you can use a FoodSaver
®
Bottl e Stop per wit h the
ori gin al co nt ain er . Re mem ber to le av e at lea st one
inc h of roo m bet we en c ont ent s an d bot tom of Bo ttl e
Stopper . Y ou can re-seal bottles after eac h use.
Prepar ation Guidelines for Make-ahe ad Meals,
Lefto vers and Sandwic hes:
Efficiently store your make-ahe ad meals, leftovers
and sandwiche s in the stack able, lightweight
FoodSaver
®
containers. They are microwaveabl e,
top rac k dish wash er s af e and co me wi th a cu stom
ad apt or . The li ght wei ght co nt ain er s wi ll be re ady to
he ad of f to the of fic e or sc hoo l when y ou are!
Prepar ation Guidelines for Snac k Foods:
Y our snac k foods will maintain their freshness
longer when you vacuum pac kage them. For best
results, use a FoodSaver
®
Canister for crushable
items like crac kers.
Vacuum Packaging Non-Food Items
The FoodSaver
®
vacuum packagin g system also
pro te cts non- fo od it ems fro m o xi dat ion , co rr os ion
and mois ture . Si mp ly fol lo w the dire cti on s to va cuu m
pac kage items using FoodSaver
®
Bag s, C an is te rs and
Acc essories.
T o vacuum pack age silver , wrap fork tines in soft
cush ion ing mat eri al, suc h as a pa per tow el, to
avoid puncturing bag. Y our FoodSaver
®
Bag s ar e
ide al for out doo r ex cu rs ion s. For c amp in g and
hiking, keep your matc hes, maps and food dry and
compact. T o have fresh water for drinking, simply
fill a FoodSaver
®
Bag w ith ic e, se al it an d whe n
nee ded , let the ic e pac k mel t. If yo u’r e go ing sa ili ng
or boating, vacuum pac kage your food, film and a dr y
ch ange of clothes. Just remember to bring scissors or
a knife to open the bag.
T o ke ep eme rg ency k its sa fe an d dry , vacu um
pac kage flares, batteries, flashlights, matc hes,
candles and other neces sities. Y our emergency items
will stay dry and organiz ed in your home, car or boat.
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